What to Wear for Family Photos in Utah

What to Wear for Family Photos in Utah

Every family asks me this. Usually about a week out, usually a little stressed about it. So here's the same advice I give on every planning call, written down.

Coordinate, don't match

The matching-outfits era is over, and good riddance. Everyone in white shirts and jeans flattens your family into a uniform. What works is coordination: pick three or four colors that live well together and let each person wear their own thing within them. Mom in a rust sweater, dad in olive, one kid in cream, one in denim. Same family, real people.

An easy trick: start with one outfit someone already loves, then build everyone else around it. There's usually a mom holding a dress in her closet she's been hoping to wear. Start there.

Pick colors for your walls, not for the park

Here's the part almost nobody thinks about. These portraits are going to hang in your home. Look at your living room. If your house is warm neutrals and wood, dress in creams, rust, olive, and denim, and the art will look like it was made for the room, because it was. If your home leans cool and modern, softer blues and grays will sit better on the wall.

This is the difference between a photo you post and art you live with. Dress for where the image ends up.

Utah specifics

Golden hour on a foothill trail means warm light on golden grass. Earth tones glow in it. Neon and bright primary colors fight it.

Bring layers. Our valley swings twenty degrees between the start of a session and the end, and a good jacket or cardigan is also a posing tool.

Fall sessions: the scrub oak turns rust and gold, so skip orange and red clothing that disappears into it. Cream, sage, navy, and brown stand out beautifully against fall color.

What to skip

Big logos and graphic tees. Tight stripes and small checks, which do strange things on camera. Brand-new shoes on kids, since they'll be scuffed in ten minutes and everyone will be sad. And anything anyone feels stiff in. Comfort photographs better than fancy every single time.

The real answer

Don't solve this alone. We plan your outfits together before your session, as part of planning everything else. Bring me your closet dilemmas on the call and I'll tell you exactly what will work for your family, your location, and your walls.